Curtain-supporting means for automobile doors



Apr.-10, 1923.

1.;1-1, FEDER CURTAIN SUPPORTING MEANS FOR AUTOMOBILE DOORS Fild May 6, 1922 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY/T zouhs ff fider Patented Apr. 10, 1923.

UNITED.

LOUIS H. FEDER, or CLEVELAND, OHIO,

ASSIGNOE or ONE-HALF To arcnaan s. BONDY, or CLEVELAND, onro. a

CURTAIN-SUPPOBJTING.MEANS FOB AUTOMOBILE DOORS.

' Application filed May 6,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LOUIS H. Fnnnn, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Cleveland, county of Cuyahoga, and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Im-.

provement in Curtain-Supporting Means for Automobile Doors, ofwhich the following is a specification, the principle of the invention, being herein explained and the best mode in which I have contemplated applying that principle, so as to distinguish it from other inventions.

The present invention relates to the construction of automobile doors and means in conjunction therewith, for supporting andholding the side curtains which are so made as to open with the doors, and to this end the door is made with a pocket in which the folded curtain is-adapted to be stored, and this pocket is also provided with means for supporting the curtain when the same is to be raised. The present invention relates particularly to improvements andmodifications of the general construction shown in my co-pending application curtain support for automobile doors, filed June 27, 1921, Serial No. 480,507. To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, said invention, then, consists of the means hereinafter fully described and particularly pointed out in the claims. I p

The annexed drawing and the following description set forth in detail certain mechanism embodying the invention, such dis-' closed means constituting, however, but one of various mechanical forms in which the principle of the invention may be used.

In said annexed drawing Fig. 1 is an elevational view of the inside of a door showing the curtain arrangement in its supported position and the folded arrangement of the curtain and support in dotted lines; Fig. 2 is a sectional view on theline 22 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 isan eleva tional view similar to Fig. 1 but showing a modified formof construction; Fig. 1 is a section on the'line 4- 1 of Fig. 3; 5is an -elevational view similar to Figs. 1 and 3 but showing a slightly different constructional form; and Fig. '6 is asectional view on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5.

In the present construction there is shown a typical automobile door 1, which, as usually constructed, comprises a substantially rectangular frameworkfl provided exterior- 1922. Serial No. 558,996.

ly with a thin sheet 3 of metalor equivalent material, the'inner side of the frame being covered withleather 'or other fabric material 1 having a large-openingtherein.which is preferably covered by a flap 5 so as to form a sort of a pocket 6 within the door.

In the present constructionthere is mount-' ed' within the pocket a. horizontal rodv 7 which is suitably attached to the door frames and this rod 7 is preferably mounted close to the top frame of the. door, asbest 7 shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 5. On this. rodi s; carried the curtain support which inv the form shown in-Fig. 1, comprises a metal" strap 8 having an apertured ear 9 at one end at right angles to the plane of the strap, this apertured ear 9 being mounted on the rod 7 so as to be slidable therealong as ,well

as rotatable about the same. The body portion of the strap is curved at an angle so that when the strap is re volved about the rod, the outer end 10 of the same will be at: a level with the top of thedoor, and this outer end is bent so as to fit flat against the horizontal top 12 of the door, and this end is provided with a sleeve 13 arranged to stand vertically when the strap is in posi tion on the door top, as best shown in Fig. 1.

This sleeve is provided with a longitudinal slot 14, and in the sleeve is mounted the lower end of the curtain support rod 15 which is provided with a pin 16engaging' in the slot 14 so as to allow this rod to have limited movement through the sleeve in order that the lower end ofthe rod may be moved downwardly into a suitable socket17 formed in the upper frame of the door, thus locking the rod and supportin strap in position to support a curtain. fisshown, the rod is provided with an off-set '18 soas to bring the vertical line of the rod out to the edge of the door or slightly beyond the same,"

in order to obtain the necessary over-lap between the curtain 20 which'is carriedby the rod and thenext 'adjacent'curtai'n (not shown) on the automobile. As shown in all] of the elevational views ,the curtainsupport rod is provided with a joint 21 at about its central point, a slidable sleeve or the like 22' being mounted on the 'rod t'o hold the two parts in upright position when the curtain is to be raised. In the present construction;

a jointedrod or the like is necessar; fbecause;

as best shown in Fig. '1, when it is" desired to remove the curtain from the car, the sup-" port rod will be raised out of the door socket and the curtain will then be folded with the jointed rod after the curtain is unsnapped from the .door, and the entire device will be folded "down into the door pocket by, first, sliding the strap alongthe horizontal rod in the pocket to the position shown in dotted lines in F ig. 1, and the curtain and folded rod may then be folded. down into the pocket by rotating the strap about the rod so that the whole device is folded compactly into. the pocket, as bestshownin Fig. 1.

In order to allow the curtain to be thus folded, it is preferably provided with four lights 23 of transparent material spaced apart by strips 24 and 25 of fabric, the horizontal strip Q lthrough the center of the curtain being in line with the folding joint 1 in the support rod and the vertical strip 25 betweenthe transparent lights being approximately in the center or" the curtain so that the. device will fold into a neat rectangular package carried by the support rod at all times. i

A slightly modified form of construction is shown in Figs. 3 and 4 in which the curtain support and rod is formed of a single piece, the lower portion of the support having a hollow sleeve mounted. on the horizontal rod 7 and slidable and rotatable there on. This sleeve is integrally attached to a horizontal portion 31 of the support which is then bent at right angles and provided with a short offset 32 before extending again i at right angles to the horizontal portion 31 to form the support rod for the curtain proper, and thesmall right angle portion 32 is provided with'a pin 34, and this vertical portion 32 is adapted to be slid into a socket member 35 at the side of the top door frame and the pin is adapted to be dropped into suitable slots 36 in this socket member to secure the support and rod in its vertical upright position. In operation this form is essentially like the first, the sleeve 30 sliding along the supporting rod in the pocket and being rotatable thereabout so that the curtain support rod may be folded down in thepocket, as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3.

In the third form which is illustrated in Figs. '5 and 6, the construction is essentially similar to that in the second form inasmuch as there is a sleeve 40 mounted'on the horizontal pocket rod 7 which carries a horizontal support 4L1 having two successive oilsets or step'portions 42 and 43 terminating in the upright curtain. support rod 44, and one of these. offset portions is provided with a loop 45. The top frame member of the door is slotted with the slot 46. running from the inner face of the door along the same and into the. door slightly, and within this slot is fixed a cross pin 47 over which the loop fi portion of the support rod is adapted robe engaged in order to hold the folded Inthis case the sleeve 4-0 which is g that the support rod may be raised into its curtain holding position along the door edge, or lowered into its fQlClGfl-POSltlOll, as shown in dotted lines in F in. 5.

The present forms, as previously stated,

are modifications of construction shown in my (Jo-pending application, and they make use of the same principle of construct-ion whereby the curtain support is movable along the. upper edge of the door, that is, from front to back, and is also pivotally mounted about this horizontal support so that the curtain may be folded down within the door pocket below the upper framework of the door, and thus the upper edge of the door is left closed as in the usual door construction except for the usual socket opening or the like, and the curtain and support may be stowed away together without danger of the curtain rods becoming bent and the curtain becoming detached or lost from the rod, and it is always in a position to be readily raised. Furthermore, by means of the usual flap on tl'1e,poc'ket,'the curtain and supporting means are out of sight when housed and the door is in all/respects the usual door which is always supplied with a socket for the curtain support, wherethe automobile-is supplied with door opening curtains.

Other modes of'applying the principle of my invention may be employed instead of the one explained, change being made as regards the mechanism herein disclosed, pro vided the means stated by any of the following claims or the equivalent of such stated means be employed' I therefore particularly point out and dis tinctly claim as my invention: Y

1. In a device of the character described, the combinationof a vehicle door having, a top frame member and a pocket below said. member, of a rod: mounted in said pocket below said frame member, a support mem ber slidably mounted on said rod and rotat able thereabout and a curtain support rod carried'by said support member and movable therewith froma position above said top frame member to a po'sitionbelow the same within said pocket.

2. Ina device of'the-character described, the combination of avehicle doorhavinga top frame member anda pocket beloiwsaid" member, of a rod mountedinsaid pocketbee.

"top frame member and a pocket below said member, of a rod mounted in said pocket below said frame member and extendlng longitudinally of said door, a support member slidably mounted on said rod and rotatable thereabout, and a jointed curtain support rod carried by said support member,

said curtain rod being foldable and movable with said support member longitudinally along said rod rotatably about the same from its curtain supporting position above said top frame member to a position below the same entirely within such pocket.

' 4. In a device of the character described, the combination of a vehicle door having a fixed top frame member, and a pocket below the same opening on the inside of said door, a foldable curtain, a rod mounted in said pocket and extending longitudinally of said door, a support member slidably mounted on said rod and rotatableabout the same, a jointed curtain rod attached to said sup- 'port member and adapted to be attached to said curtain, said support rod and curtain being foldable and then being movable about said rod as an axis and along the same to move said curtain, support rod and support member from the curtain raised position to its folded position below said top frame member entirely within such pocket.

5. In a device of the character described, the combination of a vehicle door having a solid top frame member and a pocket below the same open to the inside of said door, a rod mounted within such pocket below said top frame member and extending longitudinally of the door, a support member having an apertured ear rotatably mounted on said rod and slidable therealong, said rod being curved and provided with an apertured end set at an angle to the support member and adapted in its upward position to rest on said top frame -member, and a curtain support rodcarried by said support member and movable therewith and adapted in one position to extend vertically upward at the edge of said door and in the other position to be mounted within such door pocket. 1

6. In a device of the character described,

the combination of a vehicle door having a solid top frame member and a pocket below the same open to the inside of said door,

a rod mounted within such pocket belowsaid top frame member and extending longitudinally of the door, a support member having an apertured ear rotatably mounted on said rod and slidable therealong said rod being curved and provided with an apertured end set at an angle to the support member and adapted in its upward osition to rest on said top frame mem er, a sleeve 'on said support member andv a curtain support rod slidably mounted in said, sleeve, and a socket in said top frame member adapted to receive the end of said curtain support rod to secure said curtaln support rod and said support member in their upward position.

7. In a device of the character described, the combination of a vehicle door having a solid top frame member and a pocket be low the same open to the inside of the door, a horizontal longitudinally extending rod mounted in such pocket below said top frame member, a support member and 'curtain support rod comprising a sleeve rotatably mounted on said rod and movable therealong, and having an offset portion adapted to allow said curtain support rod to extend vertically upward from above said top frame member, and means on said door for engage- I ment with said support member and curtain rod and adapted to receive them in raised curtain holding position.

Signed by me this 2 day of May, 1922.

LOUIS H. FEDER. 

